ESPN Classic - How'd they come up with that?

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Wednesday, November 19, 2003
How'd they come up with that?
By Bob Carter
Special to ESPN Classic

Ever wonder where a team's nickname orginated?

Club owner Tim Mara named the Giants, who originated in 1925, after New York's then baseball team. Both played in the Polo Grounds in upper Manhattan. The baseball team was named in recognition of the city's skyscrapers.

The Baltimore Ravens are named for poet Edgar Allen Poe's 18-stanza poem, "The Raven." Poe, who lived much of his life in Baltimore, was born 192 years ago this month. The Ravens were born on March 29, 1996 after fans, participating in a Baltimore Sun phone-in poll, chose "Ravens" by a wide margin over "Americans" and "Marauders."

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